Copper is one of the most useful metals known to man, and it was one of the first to be utilized. Copper is a reddish-yellow material and is extremely ductile. Copper has a face-centered-cubic (fcc) crystal structure and has the second best electrical conductivity of the metals, second only to silver compared to which it has a conductivity of 97%. The thermal conductivity of copper is very high, falling in between silver and gold. There are almost 400 different copper alloys depending on the commercial product made; rods, plates, sheets, strips, tubes, pipes, extrusions, foils, forgings, wires, and castings from foundries.

The typical elastic modulus of copper alloys at room temperature (25°C) is about 117 GPa. The typical density of copper alloys ranges from 8.8 to 8.94 g/cm3. The typical tensile strength varies between 172 and 220 MPa. The wide range of ultimate tensile strength is largely due to different heat treatment conditions.